Rust in captaincy baptism of fire

By John Tuerijama
THE inclusion of Eugene Jantjies in the national rugby team, which is cur­rently in Uruguay for the 2017 World Rugby Nations Cup, has forced Windhoek Draught Welwitschias coach Lyn Jones to ap­point Winmar Rust as interim skipper of the dismally performing team.
Jones told Confidente that the United Rug­by Club captain has the ability and experience to take charge of the team, despite a shock­ing performance last week during Rust’s first match in charge, when they lost 84-0 to the Golden Lions.
Jones is, however, confident of a good showing in the team’s remaining SuperSport Rugby Challenge game this weekend against the Pumas, at the Hage Geingob Rugby Stadi­um on Saturday.
During the competition, the Welwitchias have only managed one win, a narrow 45-43 victory against the Valke on 27 May.
They kicked off their campaign with a 50- 33 loss against the Valke on 22 April, before losing 50-25 against the Blue Bulls on 29 April. They lost 112-14 to the Golden Lions on 6 May, before succumbing 64-8 to the Pu­mas on 14 May.
The Windhoek Draught Welwitschias team’s performances have attracted a host of criticism.
Jones said the overall objective of the team is to prepare for the Currie Cup competition, which is scheduled to kickoff on 26 August.
Jones said the purpose of having the Wind­hoek Draught Welwitschias compete in the SuperSport Rugby Challenge is so they can feed the national senior rugby team.
He said that the young lads need to play in competitions, such as the rugby challenge and the Currie Cup, in order to get much-needed exposure.
This Saturday’s match between the Wind­hoek Draught Welwitschias and the Pumas will be broadcast live across the continent.
The live broadcast by SuperSport is part and parcel of the broadcaster’s 25th anniversary in Namibia. The live broadcast will be a Super­Sport special, to celebrate MultiChoice Na­mibia’s anniversary, and it will see Namibian rugby being showcased to millions of viewers. SuperSport Chief Executive Officer, Gideon Khobane, said that SuperSport is delighted to be broadcasting this important match from Namibia, “not least because the SuperSport Rugby Challenge is so vital in helping nurture future stars”.
Khobane called on rugby lovers to celebrate and support the Namibian team on Saturday.
Namibia Rugby Union (NRU) Acting CEO, Elizma Theron, expressed her gratitude.
She said the NRU is extremely grateful for the opportunity to have a live broadcast of one of their SuperSport Rugby Challenge match­es. “Our participation was made possible through the generosity of Windhoek Draught and First National Bank Namibia. The match against the Pumas will be rather challenging, with many of our players participating in the Nations Cup in Uruguay,” she said.
Theron said the Windhoek Draught Wel­witschias will play with absolute determina­tion and passion, which the nation has grown accustomed to.
The much-anticipated match will be aired live on SuperSport SS1 (DStv Channel 201) at 13h00.